State television channel attacked in Santa Cruz

Unidentified assailants attempted to toss homemade bombs at the offices of Canal 7, a state-owned television station in the eastern city of Santa Cruz, 529 miles (851 kilometers) southeast of La Paz. Security guards thwarted the attack. No one was injured and there was limited damage, Beimar Villalpando, a journalist with the television station, told CPJ.

In the two weeks before the attack, Canal 7 journalists received telephone calls threatening them with death or assault. Villalpando said that he believed the attacks could be linked to the Union Juvenil Crucenista, a branch of the Comité Cívico Pro Santa Cruz, a local anti-government right-wing organization. On September 8, Canal 7 had suffered another attack with homemade bombs. Unidentified callers had previously warned the station that it would face consequences for not giving positive coverage to a general strike led by the Unión Juvenil Cruceñista.

Local authorities are investigating both attacks, according to press reports.